Show ContentsDu quesnoy History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Du quesnoy family

The surname Du quesnoy was first found in Normandy (French: Normandie), the former Duchy of Normandy, where this distinguished family held a family seat, and were members of the aristocratic families of that region.

Interestingly, the first record of the family was found at Norwich in England where Peter Quesnel (died 1299) was a Franciscan, warden of the Franciscan house at Norwich. 1

Olivier Quesnel, born in 1654, son of Pierre and Marie (née Poulard), travelled from France to Canada in the 17th century. After arriving in Quebec he married Catherine Prud'homme, daughter of Louis and Roberte (née Gadois), in Montreal on 15th January 1680. Olivier worked as an armorer and remained in Quebec until his death at Lachine on 15th May 1719. 2

Early History of the Du quesnoy family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Du quesnoy research. Another 83 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1502, 1542, 1580, 1619, 1634, 1668, 1694, 1719, 1749, 1774, 1809, 1838 and 1923 are included under the topic Early Du quesnoy History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Du quesnoy Spelling Variations

One can encounter great variation in the spelling of French surnames; in part, as spelling, and the spelling names was not yet standardized during the early development of the written French language. Later, there was much branching and movement of families, and spellings would change according to region. Variations of the name Du quesnoy include Quesnel, Quesnell, Quesnelle, Quesnoy, Quesnay, Quesne, Quesneau, du Quesnel, du Quesnell, Quennell, Quennel, Du Quesnoy, du Quesnay, du Quesne and many more.

Early Notables of the Du quesnoy family

Another 47 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Du quesnoy Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Du quesnoy Ranking

In France, the name Du quesnoy is the 2,132nd most popular surname with an estimated 2,977 people with that name. 3

Migration of the Du quesnoy family

France finally gave land incentives for 2,000 migrants during the 1700s. Early marriage was encouraged in New France, and youths of 18 took fourteen-year-old girls for their wives. The fur trade was developed and attracted migrants, both noble and commoner from France. 15,000 explorers left Montreal in the late 17th and 18th centuries, leaving French names scattered across the continent. The search for the Northwest passage continued. Migration from France to New France or Quebec, as it was now more popularly called, continued until 1759. By 1675, there were 7000 French in Quebec. By the same year the Acadian presence in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island had reached 500. In the treaty of Utrecht, the Acadians were ceded by France to Britain in 1713. In 1755, 10,000 French Acadians refused to take an oath of allegiance to England and were deported. They found refuge in Louisiana. Meanwhile, in Quebec, the French race flourished, founding in Lower Canada, one of the two great solitudes which became Canada. Many of this distinguished family name Du quesnoy were prominent in social, cultural, religious and political affairs in France and New France. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Du quesnoy were Olivier Quesnel who settled at Duquesnel, Quebec, in 1676 from Normandy, and was later followed by Jacques Quesnel in 1676, also from Normandy; Magdalen Quesnell settled in Virginia in 1726..


Contemporary Notables of the name Du quesnoy (post 1700) +

  • Florent Joseph Duquesnoy, French Divisional General during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars from 1789 to 1815 4


  1. Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
  2. Olivier, Reginald L. Your Ancient Canadian Family Ties. Logan: The Everton Publishers, Inc., P.O. Box 368, 1972. Print
  3. http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
  4. Generals Who Served in the French Army during the Period 1789-1815. (Retrieved 2015, February 25) Florent Duquesnoy. Retrieved from http://www.napoleon-series.org/research/c_frenchgenerals.html


Houseofnames.com on Facebook